Kalamazoo College falling short of enrollment goals, expects approximately 340 freshmen in fall

KALAMAZOO, MI –Kalamazoo College is falling short of its freshman enrollment goals this year with a projected 340 new freshmen planning on attending the college in the fall.

The college aimed to bring in a freshman class of at least 375 students, said Kalamazoo College Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Eric Staab.

Staab says 1,378 students are currently attending Kalamazoo College, which is about 20 students less than those enrolled in the fall. He hopes K-College can maintain its current enrollment levels for the next year.

“Our fall numbers were the highest we’ve had in a long time. We are recruiting more out of the state of Michigan and internationally. We started to recruit internationallyin fall 2006. This fall, we should have 26 new first-year international students seeking degrees,” Staab said.

Staab says he travels to 17 countries once a year to recruit international students.

He said most incoming international K-College students will be traveling from China, South Korea, Jamaica, Vietnam and Thailand. Staab says eight are expected from South Korea.

The K-College Board of Trustees is expected to agree on a 2013 budget this weekend, said college spokesperson Jeff Palmer, but it is unclear how the budget will be impacted by the shortage of freshmen.

“Our rule of thumb is the average student usually pays half the sticker price or less of tuition,” Staab said. “There isn’t a student here who gets a complete full ride, but hardly any student pays the complete ticket price. Most students have some form of financial aid from us, the state or the federal government. Even though our price looks expensive, a family doesn’t know until they apply and receive merit and need-based support what they will pay.”

Those students receive approximately $29,000 on average, in combined financial aid awards from the college, the state and the federal government.
K-College reported awarding more than $22 million in institutional grants and scholarships for students this academic year.